Odometer.



K. LITTLEJOHN.

- ODOMETER. APPLICATION FILED MAY 23, 1911. 4 1,003,623, Patented Sept. 19, 1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

gumufoz K. LITTLEJOHN;

ODOMETER.

APPLIGATION FILED MAY 23, 1911.

Patented Sept. 19,1911.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

. Snow W01; irmflizfl/rzzf/a/y/g KENDREE LI QTLEJOHN, F PACOLET, SOUTH CAROLINA.

DDOMETER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 19, 1911.

' Application filed May 23,1911. Serial No. 629,034.

" To all whom concern:

Be it knownlthat I; KENDREE Lrrru-z ronn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pacolet, in the county of Spartanburg and State of South Carolina, have invented cer' tain new and useful Im rovements in. Odom,- eters, of which the ollowing is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of de vices known as odometers, which are in the nature of instruments for measuring the distance traveled over a road, and which are generally in the form of appliances to be attached t0 the wheels of a vehicle to determine the number of revolutions. Such a device is a reat desideratum, especially for the use of iverymen,-who usually have no means of knowing the distance traveled by a hired team.

My invention consists in a simple and practical device of this character which is adapted to be fitted over the hub of the wheel to accurately register its revolutions, and which is universally applicable to all wheels and is quickly applied or-removed, Without involving any alteration of or injury to the wheel.

Figure 1. is an inside view of a wheel with my invention applied thereto. Fig. 2. is a transverse section of my odometer-with v a part of the spokes of thewheel'rcinoved. Fig. 3. is a transverse section thr'ough'lines 33 of Fig. 4, showing the register in. place.'

Fig. 4. is an inside view of the inner case section of the annular housing and, Fig. ii,

is a similar view showing a modification- In the drawings, Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, A represents the spokes of a wheel, and B the hub, to which myinvention is shown applied, inside the wheel, 2'. e. between the wheel and the body of thevehicle, where it'is protected. from external injury.

The case or housing of the odometer is of annular or ring-shapedform and embraces the hub so as tobe concentric 'therewith.-' Said housing is made in two parts'teleseoped the one into the other. The inner section (I,

, Figs. 2, 3, 4, consists of the' outer' flange 1,

inner fi nge 3,and connecting wall 2. The

outer section D consists of outer walls 4 and 5 at right angles to each other having on the outer periphery a marginal flange (Z provided with a series of perforations for bolts and an A inner crimp or flange e. The inner section on the outside ofthe'wheel.

C is retained between the outer wall 4 and flange or crimp e of the outer sect-ion D and as it lies next to the spokes, as shown in Fig. 2, no other provision is required for holding it in place, as the outer section has its peri heral flange d lying. flat against the spo es, parallel to the plane of the wheel, and is secured by boltsa extending between the spokes to an outer ring E lying The two sections of the housing form an annular casing that is applied to the hub concentrically with the same from the inside and they are made insizes to'suit the sizes of the various hubs to which they may be. applied.'= v

The outer flan e 1 of the inner section C of the housing is at one point indented to receive a glass plate 1, Fig. 3, and'the outer wall of theoutersection of the housing has an opening coinciding with the glass plate f the edges of which opening hold the glass plate in place in its indented seat when the parts of the case are telescoped together, as

seen in Fig. 3. Just opposite this window is placed in the housing a registering device R, which may be a Veeder cyclometer, or' any other form of registering device. The wheels of this register are operated by a shaft M, Figs. 3, and 4, which shaft has 'a rigidly attached ratchet wheel L which-is intermittently operated upon at every revolution of the vehicle wheel by actuating devices, as follows: Within the annular lions ing is fulcrumed upon a pin I a circular curved lever F extending a little more than half around the casing, see Fig. 4. Thisdever F at one end bears a pawl Kiwhich, as the lever oscillates, in therevolutions of the wheel, engages and turnsthe ratchet wheel L one notch for each revolution of the vehicle wheel and consequently turns the register a corresponding-space, a suitable detentbeing provided to prevent back motion. The

other'endof the curved leverat a point diametrically opposite its fulcrum hears a freely moving Weight'G which plays within a supplementary housing H in" the annular hous 'Thi's supplementary housing H is cheaplyand firmly held-in placeby cri'mps r ormaking a rattling noise. To further hold.

the long curved lever steady against lateral play, the lever is connected. to its fulcrum pin l by apivot plate at and against this pivot plate is arranged tobear a spiral spring J, see Fig. 2, wound about the pin l and retained by a washer and cross pin.

As a modification of my invei'ition; the circular lever F may be constructed as a complete circle, or ring l as seen in Fig. 5, in which G is the weight. set diametrically opposite the fulcrum l on the opposite side of the center of the curve of the lever. This circular lever is connected to the register R by a pin K playing in the slot of a crank arm L of the register. In such modification elastic cushion stops m m serve to limit the vibration of the lever. in either case, as the vehicle wheel turns over, the weight gravitates first in one direction and then in the other about its fulcrum and im parts the necessary movement to the registering devices by a strong and positive ac 'tion.

In pointing out the merits of the circularly curved actuating lever having a fulcrum on one side of the center of the curve of the annular housing and its weighton the opposite side of the center, I would state that this causes the weight in the shift' ing movement to oscillate longitudinally in the annular housing, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 4, in a curved path substan- Cir tially corresponding to the curve of the annular housing which gives a long and strong impulse on the long end of the lever to positively and certainly actuate the register and thus permits a relatively narrow and unobtrusive annular casing.

I claim. v

1. An odometer comprising an annular housing adapted to embrace the wheel hub, a registering device within the same and an actuating device for the register consisting of a circularly curved lever having a tulcrum within the annular housing and on one.

side of the center of the same, and an atlied weight on the opposite side of said annular housing with respect to the center the wheel hub, and means connecting said i curved-lever to the register.

An odometer comprising an annular bruising adapted to embrace the wheel hub,

a registering device within the same and an actuating device for the register consisting of a circularly curved lever having a tulciaimwithin the annular housing and on one side of the center of the same, and an at tached weight on the opposite side of said annular housing with respect to the center of the hub, and means connecting said curved lever to the register, the curved lever being made of semicircular extent and. having a supplementary housing within the annular. housing to i the weight.

An odome er c an annular In housing adapted to ei'nbrace the wheel hub,

a registering device within the same and an actuating device for the register consisting side of the center of the same, and an attached weight on the opposite side of said annular housing with respect to the center of the hub, means connecting said curved lever to the register, and a spring at the fulcrum of the lever to prevent rattling and lateral movement of the lever.

t. An odometer having an annular casing with registering devices, said casing consisting of an inner annular section having an inner and outer flange and connecting side wall and the outer section having a pcripheral perforated flange extending parallel to the spokes of the wheel and an inner inturned flange, the inner section being contained within the outer section and adapted to be inclosed and retained between the outersection and the spokes, and an opposite clamping device for the peripheral flange of the housing adapted to fit -on the other side of the spokes.

An odometer having an annular housing adapted to embrace the wheel hub, a register within the ,same, a semicircular weighted lever 'fulcrumed in the annular housing on one side of its center, means for connecting it to the register, a weight on the opposite end of the lever and in the opposite side of the annular housing with respect to the center of the hub, and a supplemental lions-- ing adapted to embrace the wheel hub, a

register within the same, a semicircular weighted lever fulcrumed within the annular housing, means for connecting it to the register, a weight on the end of the lever on the opposite side of the annular housing and a supplemental housing for the weight,

said latter housing being made detachable, and crimps for securing the supplemental housing within the annular housing.

7. An odometer having an annular housing adapted to embrace the wheel hub, a register within the same, a semicircular weighted lever, means tor connecting it to the register, a weight on the opposite end of the lever and a fulcrum for the lever placed diametrically opposite the weight to cause the weight to move longitudinally in the housing in a curved line corresponding substantially to the curve of the annular housing and at right angles to the radial line of the hub.-.

8. An odometer, comprising an annular housing made in two telescoping sections adapted to slide laterally one over the other, said sections being formed with a peripheral opening having off-set edges forming a seat for a- WindoW pane, a transparent pane seated therein and secured by the telescoping of one housing section over the other, a register Within the housing opposite said opening and a'giavity actuated device for operating the register.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence Jof two Witnesses.

' KENDREE LITTLEJOHN. I Witnesses: I i

HUGH R. CANNON, E. W. MILLER. 

